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www.arcticoutreach.org --- e-mail rinker@arcticoutreach.org --- phone 403-989-3715
Dear Friends,
We want to remind our readers that the purpose of these newsletters is to convey to interested churches and individuals the scope of this ministry so you can decide your own involvement in prayer, support, or simply to be enlightened of modern day missions among the Native American people. Our ministry is in remote, isolated regions, and so much of what we do is not visible to the greater public. Most of the work and effort is totally unknown to the world and we can not be immersed in faithfully ministering to a people and also run a publicity office to publish every detail of those things we wish you could see and share with us. What we have done is try to find a balance where we send out letters and maintain a website which contains enough information to discern the quality of the ministry with out loading ourselves down with PR work to stifle the grassroots ministry. Our website contains 1,500 files of documentation and photos. We have done things such as maintain a one month daily diary, but the real strength is in all the photos since a picture conveys a thousand words. Sometimes people express they don't know too much about what is going on, so we want to remind you that it would be hard to find a mission that has published a record as extensive as what we have.
We also have a calling plan for phone that includes unlimited calling for all North America. We would love for you to phone us...we can call you right back on our plan and talk in person for the latest update. So there, you have no excuse for not being up on the latest...We have just built a new computer and set it up to improve our website. We have used Adobe software for years and have upgraded to their Creative Cloud, so we can make a significant upgrade. We would like your input as to how we can improve the website and make it better...Please!!
There are several points which we feel are significant to our work. Fifty years ago I was in Bible College preparing for mininstry, and next summer will mark 50 years since I started my outreach to the Indian people of North America on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota and have been immersed in it ever since, not just in ministry but in living immersed in their community, culture, life, and homes. For us it has not been a career, for profit or recognition, but a life to be lived to prove the faithfulness of God...to see what He would be pleased to do with it. We have neglected you, in your churches, to plow all our hearts into the soil of the hearts and lives of these people, to see what He would do with them. We sense an identity with a very small group of people in corners of the earth who experience an intensity and seriousness the world can't comprehend.
One development taking place right now involves myself (Rodger) will be focusing my attention more in our northern outreach, which mostly involves a men's ministry, and Karen and the ladies of the Sunchild mission will be taking most of the pastoral responsibilities for the chapel here, which is primarily a women's and youth ministry. Right now a strong effort is being made to see the Sunchild mission financed by Alberta churches, and this would allow for any support coming from outside Alberta to go for the Outreach program. We are hoping to get back into Siberia as well.
This team below is from an organization called "Sticks and Stuff", in Three Hills, Alberta. They are a drama team that go to churches for a youth ministry. They use sticks as part of their props and do dramas and also teach youth groups to do the dramas as well. They had a great time here with our kids and want to come back and teach them.
Three more people got baptized this summer. Our baptism service was a very special time and a wonderful spirit was felt by all. We see a lot of spiritual development in people after they get baptized. It is a real blessing to them. Needless to say, it is a great blessing to us as well to see them make a public commitment of their faith. In the last year we have had 10 people get baptized. David, from the Korean church, is assisting here in the baptism. His family also has done all the cooking for our VBS teams the last several years.
The green shirts are the 'Priority One' team from Pennsylvania. Everyone else are local support staff for our Sunchild VBS camp held in July. We had 100 kids enrolled again this year, and it was a blessing to see so many families driving their kids in every day. The Korean family in the front row is David and Rose from Calgary. They are the cooks for the camp. They may have to go back to Korea if they can't get their paperwork to stay in Canada. We really had a great time with this team and we can't say enough as to how hard they worked and their wonderful spirit as they put their hearts in this ministry. We had really special devotions each night and it just showed how serious they are about their Christian walk and development. The priority organization wants to send us two large teams next summer. We had two teams last year also.
This is Adrian from Saskatchewan and his three kids. He hasn't had custody of his children since the youngest was born. This summer he got them back and wants to make a home for them. The kids live next to us and we have always known them. So we gave Adrian our 'cook tent' to live in while he works on making a home and getting his family back together.
This is the group picture at the Red Deer College strings workshop. We had three of our violin students attend the workshop this year. The Sunchild Band administration paid the tuition and expenses for the workshop, which was a great priviledge for these kids. We desperately need a teacher for the music program. It takes so much time and work..I'm at the end of my rope with it. We need someone to take it over and carry it on.
I had an incredible experience while at the violin making workshop in June. One day a Stradavarius and a Del Jesu violin was brought in for us to spend time with! They are about 300 years old. In this picture I'm holding the Del Jesu. It is much more valuable than the Strad because there were so few made.
This case holds both the Stradavarius (bottom one) and the Del Jesu plus six rare/valuable bows. I won't say the value of these violins and bows because no one would believe me. Just pick the highest figure you could imagine and multiply it many times over! I will never hold in my hands anything remotely as valuable as this..(at least anything in commercial value.) I have my workbench set up now and equiped, but not much time to work on learning how to make violins.
These are our 100% sourdough, buttermilk cinnamon rolls. When we use butter and cream cheese they are true 'death by cinnamon rolls'. Worth coming all the way up here to experience! The only yeast is the sourdough and it is somewhat of an art to do it right..and they are sour, especially with the buttermilk.
Another special treat is our dutch oven baked beans & ham. We do a lot of cooking such as barbecuing meat, in the fireplace. Both my Mom and her Mom were real talented cooks, so we know what real food tastes like, and you just can't get it anywhere unless you do it yourself.
This is our dog that we brought down from Old Crow in the Yukon. She is hamming it up for the picture. She is 11 years old now, and yes her eyes are a deep blue. Sometimes she has to have us make her an ice cream cone, and yes she gets what she wants at her age and with those eyes.
We won't get another letter out before Christmas so we remind you to pray for up here as this is by far the most difficult time of year for this society. Be sure and follow the link below to Karen's newsletter as she has more news and a bunch of pictures also. I haven't put it all on one page because it makes too large a file to load. In His Service, Rodger and Karen Rinker
Something New! We are now set up so you can donate to the Mission account 'Online'. You can get your tax receipt instantly when you donate. Our Canadian registered charity is called "Canadian Inland Mission"